A Night In Bethlehem
Caesar's Guards demand passports before allowing us to enter.
Headed to Bethlehem, in the distance we see shepherd's keeping watch over their sheep.
MANITOUWADGE, ON – Members of the Bethany Pentecostal Assembly hosted a very special evening at Manitouwadge High School Saturday, December 18th. Approximately a hundred attendees came through during the two hours that the open house style event has held; entering, they were welcomed in the High School’s foyer by women dressed in period costumes from the time of Jesus’ birth providing participants with a passport before offering costumes and an opportunity for them to have a photo taken with their family in front of a ‘Night in Bethlehem’ backdrop.
Visitors then continued through to the auditorium where they were swept away, 2000 years back in time, by the sounds, smells and sights of the Holy Land. A cast of nearly 50 became an entire community, filling the room. Soldiers from Caesar’s army demanded passports at the entrance, directing people to continue through a winding route created to simulate the long hike to Bethlehem that Mary and Joseph had taken. Along the way there were shepherds, beggars, a census taker and tax man and at the end of the route (usually the auditorium’s stage) was the manger, where the local pharmacist and his wife kept watch as Joseph and Mary over their ‘newborn’ son Jesus. Along the path to the manger, families enjoyed many craft stations disguised as the blacksmith, wood shop and leather shop, where they were able to make ornaments and other crafts to take home; at the bakery and confection shop fresh bread was offered to those in attendance while one of Caesar’s guards periodically arrived to scold the shopkeepers for sharing with the poor or warned attendees that no money was to be paid to anyone but Caesar; the experience was truly unique. Adding to the ambiance were random cast members, of course in robes and sandals, greeting attendees with a quiet “Shalom” and the child-beggars sitting along the path, baskets in hand.
Organizers hope to make the special night a yearly event, while participants promised to return impressed with how authentic the experience had been. Congratulations to all those whose hard work made the evening a truly memorable one for the community of Manitouwadge.
Shepherd's keep watch over their sheep.
-
- Shepherd’s keep watch over their sheep.
-
- Headed to Bethlehem, in the distance we see shepherd’s keeping watch over their sheep.
OntarioNewsNorth.com is proud to have been a sponsor of ‘A Night In Bethlehem’, visit again later today to enjoy a video walk through of ‘A Night In Bethlehem’ in Manitouwadge.
